Nora roberts 1985 night moves

“Why don’t you take acouple weeks in Cancun, or go on a shopping spree in Paris?” “Mmm.” Maggie shifted on her knees and fluffed up the petals of the pansies she was planting.They looked

Night Moves

Nora Roberts

To the mountains I live in, and the people who love them.

Chapter One

“What the hell are you doing in a place like this?”

Maggie, on her hands and knees, didn’t look up “C.J., you’re playing the same old song.”

C.J pulled down the hem of his cashmere sweater He was a man who made worry an art, and

he worried about Maggie Someone had to Frustrated, he looked down at the sable-brown hair

twisted untidily into a knot on top of her head Her neck was slender, pale, her shoulders curvedslightly forward as she rested her weight on her forearms She had a delicate build, with the kind offragility C.J had always associated with nineteenth-century English aristocratic ladies Though

perhaps they, too, had possessed endless stores of strength and endurance under frail bones and

porcelain skin

She wore a T-shirt and jeans that were both faded and slightly damp from perspiration When helooked at her hands, fine-boned, elegant hands, and saw they were grimy, he shuddered He knew themagic they were capable of

A phase, he thought She was just going through a phase After two marriages and a few affairs,C.J understood that women went through odd moods from time to time He brushed at his trim, sandymustache with one finger It was up to him to guide her back, gently, to the real world

As he glanced around at nothing but trees and rocks and isolation, he wondered, fleetingly, ifthere were bears in the woods In the real world, such things were kept in zoos Keeping a nervouslookout for suspicious movements, he tried again

“Maggie, just how long are you going to go on this way?”

“What way is that, C.J.?” Her voice was low, husky, as if she’d just been awakened It was avoice that made most men wish they’d awakened her

The woman was infuriating C.J tugged a hand through his carefully styled, blow-dried hair.What was she doing three thousand miles from L.A., wasting herself on this dirty work? He had aresponsibility to her and, damn it, to himself C.J blew out a long breath, an old habit he had

whenever he met with opposition Negotiations were, after all, his business It was up to him to talksome sense into her He shifted his feet, careful to keep his polished loafers out of the dirt “Babe, Ilove you You know I do Come home.”

This time Maggie turned her head, looking up with a flash of a smile that involved every inch ofher face—the mouth that stopped just short of being too wide, the chin a bit pointed, the sweep ofcheekbones that gave her face a diamond shape Her eyes, big, round and shades darker than her hair,added that final spark of animation It wasn’t a stunning face You’d tell yourself that while you tried

to focus in on the reason you were stunned Even now, without makeup, with a long streak of topsoilacross one cheek, the face involved you Maggie Fitzgerald involved you because she was exactlywhat she seemed Interesting Interested

Now she sat back on her haunches, blowing a wisp of hair out of her eyes as she looked up at theman who was frowning at her She felt a tug of affection, a tug of amusement Both had always comeeasily to her “C.J., I love you, too Now stop acting like an old woman.”

“You don’t belong here,” he began, more exasperated than insulted “You shouldn’t be grubbingaround on your hands and knees—”

“I like it,” she said simply.

It was the very simplicity of the tone that told him he had a real problem If she’d shouted,

argued, his chances of turning her around would’ve been all but secured But when she was like this,calmly stubborn, changing her mind would be like climbing Mount Everest Treacherous and

exhausting Because he was a clever man, C.J changed tactics

“Maggie, I can certainly understand why you might like to get away for a while, rest a bit Noone deserves it more.” That was a nice touch, he thought, because it was true “Why don’t you take acouple weeks in Cancun, or go on a shopping spree in Paris?”

“Mmm.” Maggie shifted on her knees and fluffed up the petals of the pansies she was planting.They looked, she decided, a bit sick “Hand me that watering can, will you?”

“You’re not listening.”

“Yes, I am.” Stretching over, she retrieved the can herself “I’ve been to Cancun, and I have somany clothes now I left half of them in storage in L.A.”

Without breaking stride, C.J tried a different turn “It’s not just me,” he began again, watching asshe drenched the pansies “Everyone who knows you, who knows about this, thinks you’ve—”

“Slipped a gear?” Maggie supplied Overdid the water, she decided as the saturated blossomsdrooped She had a lot to learn about the basics of country life “C.J., instead of nagging me and trying

to talk me into doing something I’ve no intention of doing, why don’t you come down here and give

“I’ve no desire to touch nature.”

This time she laughed and lifted her face to the sky No, the closest C.J would come to naturewould be a chlorinated pool—solar-heated Up to a few months ago she’d barely gotten much closerherself She’d certainly never attempted to But now she’d found something—something she hadn’teven been looking for If she hadn’t come to the East Coast to collaborate on the score for a new

musical, if she hadn’t taken an impulsive drive south after the long, grueling sessions had ended, shenever would’ve happened on the sleepy little town tucked into the Blue Ridge

Do we ever know where we belong, Maggie wondered, unless we’re lucky enough to stumbleonto our own personal space? She only knew that she’d been heading nowhere in particular and she’dcome home

Maybe it had been fate that had led her into Morganville, a cluster of houses cupped in the

foothills that boasted a population of 142 From the town proper, it spread out into farms and isolatedmountain homes If fate had taken her to Morganville, it had again taken her past the sign that listed thesale of a house and twelve acres There’d been no moment of indecision, no quibbling over the price,

no last-minute doubts Maggie had met the terms and had had the deed in her hand within thirty days.Looking up at the three-story frame house, with shutters still hanging crooked, Maggie couldwell imagine her friends and colleagues wondering about her mental state She’d left her Italian-

marble entrance hall and mosaic-tiled pool for rusty hinges and rocks She’d done it without a

“I meant the flowers.” She brushed off her jeans as she rose “In any case, I am finishing thescore—right here.”

“Maggie, how can you work here?” C.J exploded He tossed out both arms in a gesture she’dalways admired for its unapologetic theatrics “How can you live here? This place isn’t even

civilized.”

“Why? Because there’s no health club and boutique on every other corner?” Wanting to temperthe words, she tucked a hand through C.J.’s arm “Go ahead, take a deep breath The clean air won’thurt you.”

“Smog’s underrated,” he mumbled as he shifted his feet again Professionally he was her agent,but personally C.J considered himself her friend, perhaps her best friend since Jerry had died

Thinking of that, he changed his tone again This time it was gentle “Look, Maggie, I know you’vebeen through some rough times Maybe L.A has too many memories for you to deal with right now.But you can’t bury yourself.”

“I’m not burying myself.” She put her hands on his forearms, squeezing for both emphasis andsupport “And I buried Jerry nearly two years ago That was another part of my life, C.J., and hasnothing to do with this This is home I don’t know how else to explain it.” She slid her hands down tohis, forgetting hers were smeared with earth “This is my mountain now, and I’m happier here, moresettled, than I ever was in Los Angeles.”

He knew he was beating his head against a wall, but opted to give it one more shot “Maggie.”

He slipped an arm around her shoulder, as if, she thought ruefully, she was a small child needingguidance “Look at that place.” He let the silence hang a moment while they both studied the house onthe rise above He noticed that the porch was missing several boards and that the paint on the trimwas peeling badly Maggie saw the sun reflecting off the window glass in rainbows “You can’t

possibly be serious about living there.”

“A little paint, a few nails.” She shrugged it away Long ago she’d learned that surface problemswere best ignored It was the problem simmering under the surface, not quite visible, that had to bedealt with “It has such possibilities, C.J.”

“The biggest one is that it’ll fall down on your head.”

“I had the roof fixed last week—a local man.”

“Maggie, I’m not at all convinced there are any local men, or women, within ten miles Thisplace doesn’t look fit for anything but elves and gnomes.”

“Well, he might’ve been a gnome.” Her sense of fun spurred her on as she stretched her backmuscles “He was about five foot five, stocky as a bull and somewhere around a hundred and two.His name was Bog.”

“Maggie—”

“He was very helpful,” she went on “He and his boy are coming back to deal with the porch andsome of the other major repairs.”

“All right, so you’ve got a gnome to do some hammering and sawing What about this?” He

swept his hand around to take in the surrounding land It was rocky, uneven and overgrown with

weeds and thickets Not even a dedicated optimist could’ve considered any part of it a lawn A burlytree slanted dangerously toward the house itself, while thorny vines and wildflowers scrambled forspace There was a pervading smell of earth and green

“Like Sleeping Beauty’s castle,” Maggie murmured “I’ll be sorry in a way to hack it down, but

Mr Bog has that under control, too.”

“He does excavation work, too?”

Maggie tilted her head and arched her brows It was a look that made anyone over forty

remember her mother “He recommended a landscaper Mr Bog assures me that Cliff Delaney is thebest man in the county He’s coming by this afternoon to take a look at the place.”

“If he’s a smart man, he’ll take one look at that gully you call a road leading up here and keep ongoing.”

“But you brought your rented Mercedes all the way up.” Turning, she threw her arms around hisneck and kissed him “Don’t think I don’t appreciate that or the fact that you flew in from the Coast orthat you care enough to be concerned I appreciate all of it I appreciate you.” She ruffled his hair,something no one else would’ve gotten away with “Trust my judgment on this, C.J I really do knowwhat I’m doing Professionally, my work can’t do anything but improve here.”

“That’s yet to be seen,” he muttered, but lifted a hand to touch her cheek She was still youngenough to have foolish dreams, he thought Still sweet enough to believe in them “You know it’s notyour work I’m worried about.”

“I know.” Her voice softened, and with it her eyes, her mouth She was not a woman who guidedher emotions, but one who was guided by them “I need the peace here Do you know, this is the firsttime in my life I’ve gotten off the merry-go-round? I’m enjoying the solid ground, C.J.”

He knew her well and understood that there was no moving her, for the moment, from the

position she’d taken He understood, too, that from birth her life had been ribboned with the stuff offantasies—and of nightmares Perhaps she did need to compensate, for a time

“I’ve got a plane to catch,” he grumbled “As long as you insist on staying here, I want you tocall me every day.”

Maggie kissed him again “Once a week,” she countered “You’ll have the completed score for

Heat Dance in ten days.” With her arm around his waist, she led him to the end of the uneven,

overgrown path where his Mercedes sat in incongruous splendor “I love the film, C.J It’s even

better than I thought it would be when I first read the script The music’s all but writing itself.”

He only grunted and cast one look behind him at the house “If you get lonely—”

“I won’t.” With a quick laugh, Maggie nudged him into the car “It’s been enlightening

discovering how self-sufficient I can be Now, have a nice trip back and stop worrying about me.”Fat chance, he thought, automatically reaching in his briefcase to make certain his Dramaminewas there “Send me the score, and if it’s sensational, I might stop worrying … a little.”

“It is sensational.” She backed off from the car to give him room to turn around “I’m

sensational!” she shouted as the Mercedes began to inch around “Tell everyone back on the Coastthat I’ve decided to buy some goats and chickens.”

The Mercedes stopped dead “Maggie…”

Laughing, she waved at him and backed down the path “Not yet … but maybe in the fall.” Shedecided it was best to reassure him, or else he might get out and start again “Oh, and send me someGodiva chocolates.”

That was more like it, C.J thought, and put the car in gear again She’d be back in L.A in sixweeks He glanced in his rearview mirror as he started to drive away He could see her, small andslender, still laughing, against the backdrop of the overgrown land, greening trees and dilapidatedhouse Once again he shuddered, but this time it wasn’t from an offense of his sensibilities This time

it was from something like fear He had a sudden flash of certainty that she wasn’t safe there

Shaking his head, C.J reached in his pocket for his antacids as the car bumped noisily over arock Everyone told him he worried too much

Lonely, Maggie thought as she watched the Mercedes bump and wind its way down her excuse

for a lane No, she wasn’t lonely She was as certain as she’d ever been about anything that she’dnever be lonely here She felt an unexpected sense of foreboding that she shrugged off as ridiculous.

Wrapping her arms around herself, she turned in two slow circles Trees rose up out of the rockyhillside The leaves were hardly more than buds now, but in a few weeks they would grow and

spread, turning the woods into a lush cover of green She liked to imagine it that way and to try topicture it in the dead of winter—white, all white and black with ice clinging to the branches and

shimmering on the rocks In the fall there’d be a tapestry outside every window She was far fromlonely

For the first time in her life, she had a chance to put her own stamp on a place It wouldn’t be acopy of anything she’d had before or anything that’d been given to her It was hers, absolutely, and sowere any mistakes she made here, any triumphs There’d be no press to compare this isolated spot inwestern Maryland with her mother’s mansion in Beverly Hills or her father’s villa in the south ofFrance If she was lucky, very, very lucky, Maggie thought with a satisfied sigh, there’d be no press atall She could make her music and live her life in peace and solitude

If she stood very still, if she closed her eyes and didn’t move, she could hear the music all

around her Not birdsong but the ruffle of air through branches and tiny leaves If she concentrated,she could hear the faint trickle of the narrow creek that ran along the other side of the lane The

quality of silence was rich, flowing over her like a symphony

There was a place for glitz, she mused, and for glamour She simply didn’t want that place anylonger The truth was she hadn’t wanted that place for a very long time but hadn’t known the way out.When your birth had been celebrated by the international press, your first step, your first words,

cataloged for the public, it was natural to forget there was another way of life

Her mother had been one of the greatest blues and ballad singers in America, her father a childactor turned successful film director Their courtship and marriage had been followed religiously byfans around the world The birth of their daughter had been an event treated like the birth of royalty.And Maggie had lived the life of a pampered princess Gold carousels and white fur coats She’dbeen lucky because her parents had adored her, and each other That had compensated for the make-believe, often hard-edged world of show business, with all its demands and inconstancy Her worldhad been cushioned by wealth and love, rippled continually with publicity

The paparazzi haunted her on dates through her teenage years—to her amusement but often to theboys’ frustration Maggie had accepted the fact that her life was public domain It had never beenotherwise

And when her parents’ private plane had crashed into the Swiss Alps, the press had frozen hergrief in glossies and newsprint She hadn’t tried to stop it; she’d realized that the world had mournedwith her She’d been eighteen when the fabric of her world had torn

Then there had been Jerry First friend, then lover, then husband With him, her life had driftedinto more fantasy, and more tragedy

She wouldn’t think of any of that now, Maggie told herself as she picked up her spade and began

to fight the tough soil again All that was really left of that portion of her life was her music That shewould never give up She couldn’t have if she’d tried It was part of her the way her eyes and earswere part of her She composed words and music and twined them together, not effortlessly, as itsometimes seemed from the fluid finished result, but obsessively, wonderingly, constantly Unlike hermother, she didn’t perform but fed other performers with her gift

At twenty-eight, she had two Oscars, five Grammies and a Tony She could sit at the piano andplay any song she’d ever written from memory The awards were still in the packing boxes that had

been shipped from L.A.

The little flower plot she was planting in a spot perhaps no one would see but herself was alabor of love with no guarantee of success It was enough that it gave her pleasure to add her ownpeculiar spot of color to the land she’d claimed as hers Maggie began to sing as she worked She’dcompletely forgotten her former feeling of apprehension

Normally he didn’t do the estimating and initial planning on a job himself Not anymore For thepast six years Cliff Delaney had been in the position of being able to send one or two of his best menout on the first stage of a project; then he would fine-tune If the job was interesting enough, he wouldvisit the site while work was in progress, perhaps handle some of the grading and planting himself

He was making an exception

He knew the old Morgan place It had been built by a Morgan, even as the tiny community a fewmiles away had been named after one For ten years, since William Morgan’s car had crashed into thePotomac, the house had stood empty The house had always been stern, the land formidable But withthe right touch, the right insight, Cliff knew, it could be magnificent He had his doubts that the ladyfrom L.A had the right insight

He knew of her Naturally he knew of her Anyone who hadn’t spent the last twenty-eight years

in a cave knew Maggie Fitzgerald At the moment, she was the biggest news in Morganville—all buteclipsing the hot gossip of Lloyd Messner’s wife running off with the bank manager

It was a simple town, the kind that moved slowly The kind of town where everyone took pride

in the acquisition of a new fire engine and the yearly Founder’s Day parade That’s why Cliff chose tolive there after he’d reached a point where he could live anywhere he chose He’d grown up thereand understood the people, their unity and their possessiveness He understood their failings More,perhaps much more, than that, he understood the land He had serious doubts that the glamorous songwriter from California would understand either

C.J had estimated six weeks before she flew back Cliff, without ever setting eyes on her, cutthat in half But perhaps before Maggie Fitzgerald grew bored with her shot at rural living, he couldput his own mark on the land

He turned off the paved road onto the quarter-mile lane that cut through the Morgan property Ithad been years since he’d been on it, and it was worse than he remembered Rain and neglect hadworn ruts in the dirt From both sides of the lane, branches reached out to whip at the truck The firstorder of business would be the lane itself, Cliff thought as his small pickup bounced over ruts It

would be graded, leveled, filled Drainage ditches would have to be dug, gravel spread

He went slowly, not for the truck’s sake but because the land on either side of the lane appealed

to him It was wild and primitive, timeless He’d want to work with that, incorporate his own talentswith the genius of nature If Maggie Fitzgerald wanted blacktop and hothouse plants, she’d come tothe wrong place He’d be the first one to let her know

If he had a distrust of outsiders, Cliff considered he’d come by it honestly They came, oftenfrom the rich suburbs of D.C., and wanted their lawns flat and free of the poplar and oak that had firstclaim They wanted neat little flowers in orderly rows Lawns should be even, so that their mowerscould handle the weekly cutting effortlessly What they wanted, Cliff thought derisively, was to say

they lived in the country while they brought city attitudes and city tastes with them By the time he

rounded the last bend, he was already out of patience with Maggie Fitzgerald

Maggie heard the truck coming before it was in sight That was something else she liked abouther new home It was quiet—so quiet that the sound of a truck, which would have been ignored in the

city, brought her to attention Halfheartedly brushing her hands on the seat of her pants, she rose fromher planting, then shielded her eyes against the sun.

While she watched, the truck rounded the curve and parked where the Mercedes had been only

an hour before A bit dusty from the road, with its chrome dull rather than gleaming, the truck lookedmuch more comfortable than the luxury car had Though she couldn’t yet see the driver through theglare of sun on windshield, Maggie smiled and lifted a hand in greeting

The first thing Cliff thought was that she was smaller than he’d expected, more delicate in build.The Fitzgeralds had always been larger than life He wondered, with a quick grunt, if she’d want toraise orchids to match her style He got out of the truck, convinced she was going to annoy him

Perhaps it was because she’d been expecting another Mr Bog that Maggie felt a flutter of

surprise when Cliff stepped out of the truck Or perhaps, she thought with her usual penchant for

honesty, it was because he was quite simply a magnificent example of manhood Six-two, Maggiedecided, with an impressive breadth of shoulders Black hair that had been ruffled by the wind

through the open truck windows fell over his forehead and ears in loose waves He didn’t smile, buthis mouth was sculpted, sensual She had a fleeting regret that he wore dark glasses so that his eyeswere hidden She judged people from their eyes

Instead, Maggie summed him up from the way he moved—loosely, confidently Athletic, sheconcluded, as he strode over the uneven ground Definitely self-assured He was still a yard awaywhen she got the unmistakable impression that he wasn’t particularly friendly

“Miss Fitzgerald?”

“Yes.” Giving him a neutral smile, Maggie held out a hand “You’re from Delaney’s?”

“That’s right.” Their hands met, briefly, hers soft, his hard, both of them capable Without

bothering to identify himself, Cliff scanned the grounds “You wanted an estimate on some

landscaping.”

Maggie followed his gaze, and this time her smile held amusement “Obviously I need

something Does your company perform miracles?”

“We do the job.” He glanced down at the splash of color behind her, wilted pansies and soggypetunias Her effort touched something in him that he ignored, telling himself she’d be bored longbefore it was time to pull the first weeds “Why don’t you tell me what you have in mind?”

“A glass of iced tea at the moment Look around while I get some; then we’ll talk about it.”

She’d been giving orders without a second thought all her life After giving this one, Maggie turnedand climbed the rickety steps to the porch Behind the tinted glasses, Cliff’s eyes narrowed

Designer jeans, he thought with a smirk as he watched the graceful sway of hips before the

screen door banged shut at her back And the solitaire on the thin chain around her neck had been noless than a carat Just what game was little Miss Hollywood playing? She’d left a trace of her scentbehind, something soft and subtle that would nag at a man’s senses Shrugging, he turned his back onthe house and looked at the land

It could be shaped and structured without being tamed It should never lose its basic unruly sense

by being manicured, though he admitted the years of neglect had given the rougher side of nature toomuch of an advantage Still, he wouldn’t level it for her Cliff had turned down more than one jobbecause the client had insisted on altering the land’s personality Even with that, he wouldn’t havecalled himself an artist He was a businessman His business was the land

He walked farther away from the house, toward a grove of trees overrun with tangling vines,greedy saplings and thistles Without effort he could see it cleared of undergrowth, richly mulched,naturalized perhaps with jonquils That one section would personify peace, as he saw it Hitching his

thumbs in his back pockets, Cliff reflected that from the reams that had been written about MaggieFitzgerald over the years, she didn’t go in much for peace.

Jet-setting, the fast lane, glitter and glitz What the hell had she moved out here for?

Before he heard her, Cliff caught a fresh whiff of her perfume When he turned, she was a fewpaces behind him, two glasses in her hand She watched him steadily with a curiosity she didn’t

bother to hide He learned something more about her then as she stood with her eyes on his face andthe sun at her back She was the most alluring woman he’d ever met, though he’d be damned if heknew why

Maggie approached him and offered a glass of frosty tea “Want to hear my ideas?”

The voice had something to do with it, Cliff decided An innocent question, phrased in that sultryvoice, conjured up a dozen dark pleasures He took a slow sip “That’s what I’m here for,” he toldher with a curtness he’d never shown any potential client

Her brow lifted at the tone, the only sign that she’d noticed his rudeness With that attitude, shethought, he wouldn’t have the job for long Then again, he didn’t strike her as a man who’d work forsomeone else “Indeed you are, Mr … ?”

“Delaney.”

“Ah, the man himself.” That made more sense, she decided, if his attitude didn’t “Well, Mr.Delaney, I’m told you’re the best I believe in having the best, so…” Thoughtfully, she ran a fingertipdown the length of her glass, streaking the film of moisture “I’ll tell you what I want, and you tell me

if you can deliver.”

“Fair enough.” He didn’t know why her simple statement should annoy him any more than hecould understand why he was just noticing how smooth her skin was and how compelling were thoselarge velvet eyes Like a doe’s, Cliff realized He wasn’t a man who hunted but a man who watched

“I’ll tell you up front that my company has a policy against destroying the natural terrain in order tomake the land into something it’s not This is rough country, Miss Fitzgerald It’s supposed to be Ifyou want an acre or two of manicured lawn, you’ve bought the wrong land and called the wrong

landscaper.”

It took a great deal to fire up her temper Maggie had worked long and hard to control a naturaltendency toward quick fury in order to block the label of temperamental daughter of temperamentalartists “Decent of you to point it out,” she managed after three long, quiet breaths

“I don’t know why you bought the place,” he began

“I don’t believe I’ve offered that information.”

“And it’s none of my business,” Cliff finished with an acknowledging nod “But this—” he

indicated the property with a gesture of his hand “—is my business.”

“You’re a bit premature in condemning me, aren’t you, Mr Delaney?” To keep herself in check,Maggie took a sip of tea It was cold, with a faint bite of lemon “I’ve yet to ask you to bring on thebulldozers and chain saws.” She ought to tell him to haul his buns into his truck and take off Almostbefore she could wonder why she didn’t, the answer came Instinct Instinct had brought her to

Morganville and to the property she now stood on It was instinct that told her he was indeed the best.Nothing else would do for her land To give herself a moment to be sure she didn’t do anything rash,Maggie took another sip from her glass

“That grove there,” she began briskly “I want it cleared of undergrowth It can’t be enjoyed ifyou have to fight your way through thorns and thickets to walk in it.” She shot him a look “Don’t youwant to take notes?”

He watched her, consideringly “No Go on.”

“All right This stretch right here, in front of the porch—I imagine that was a lawn of sorts at onetime.” She turned, looking at the knee-high weeds “It should be again, but I want enough room toplant, I don’t know, some pines, maybe, to keep the line between lawn and woods from being toomarked Then there’s the way the whole thing just sort of falls away until it reaches the lane below.”

Forgetting her annoyance for the moment, Maggie made her way across the relatively flat land towhere it sloped steeply down Weeds, some of them as tall as she, grew in abundance wherever therocks would permit “It’s certainly too steep for grass to be practical,” she said half to herself “But Ican’t just let all these weeds have their way I’d like some color, but I don’t want uniformity.”

“You’ll want some evergreens,” he said from behind her “Some spreading junipers along thebottom edge of the whole slope, a few coming farther up over there, with some forsythia mixed in.Here, where the grade’s not so dramatic, you’d want some low ground cover.” He could see phloxspilling and bumping over the rocks “That tree’s got to come down,” he went on, frowning at the onethat leaned precariously toward her roof “And there’s two, maybe three, on the rise behind the housethat’ve got to be taken down before they fall down.”

She was frowning now, but she’d always believed in letting an expert set the plan “Okay, but Idon’t want you to cut down anything that doesn’t have to be cleared.”

Maggie could only see her own reflection in his glasses when he faced her “I never do.” Heturned and began to walk around the side of the house “That’s another problem,” Cliff continuedwithout checking to see if she was following “The way that dirt wall’s eroding down from the cliffhere You’re going to end up with a tree or a boulder in your kitchen when you least expect it.”

“So?” Maggie tilted her head so she could scan the ridge behind her house “You’re the expert.”

“It’ll need to be recut, tapered back some Then I’d put up a retaining wall, three, maybe four,foot high Crown vetch’d hold the dirt above that Plant it along the entire slope It’s hardy and fast.”

“All right.” It sounded reasonable He sounded more reasonable, Maggie decided, when he wastalking about his business A man of the land, she mused, and wished again she could see beyond thetinted glass to his eyes “This part behind the house has to be cleared.” She began to fight her waythrough the weeds and briars as she talked “I think if I had a walkway of some kind from here to thelane, I could have a rockery … here.” A vague gesture of her hands indicated the spot she had inmind “There’re plenty of rocks,” she muttered, nearly stumbling over one “Then down here—”

Cliff took her arm before she could start down the slope on the far side of the house The contactjolted both of them More surprised than alarmed, Maggie turned her head

“I wouldn’t,” Cliff said softly, and she felt a tiny trickle, an odd excitement, sprint up her spine

“Wouldn’t what?” Her chin automatically tilted, her eyes challenged

“Walk down there.” Her skin was soft, Cliff discovered With his hand wrapped around her arm,

he could touch his fingertips to his thumb Small and soft, he mused, enjoying the feel of his fleshagainst hers Too small and soft for land that would fight back at you

Maggie glanced down to where he held her She noticed the tan on the back of his hand; shenoticed the size and the strength of it When she noticed her pulse wasn’t quite steady, she lifted hergaze again “Mr Delaney—”

“Snakes,” he said simply, and had the satisfaction of seeing her take two quick steps back

“You’re almost sure to have some down in a spot like that In fact, with the way this place is

overgrown, you’re likely to have them everywhere.”

“Well, then—” Maggie swallowed and made a herculean effort not to shudder “—maybe youcan start the job right away.”

For the first time, he smiled, a very slight, very cautious, curving of lips They’d both forgotten

he still held her, but they were standing much closer now, within a hand span of touching She

certainly hadn’t reacted the way he’d expected He wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d screeched

at the mention of snakes, then had dashed into the house, slamming and locking the door Her skin wassoft, Cliff mused, unconsciously moving his thumb over it But apparently she wasn’t

“I might be able to send a crew out next week, but the first thing that has to be dealt with is yourroad.”

Maggie dismissed this with a shrug “Do whatever you think best there, excluding asphalt It’sonly a means of getting in and out to me I want to concentrate on the house and grounds.”

“The road’s going to run you twelve, maybe fifteen, hundred,” he began, but she cut him off

again

“Do what you have to,” she told him with the unconscious arrogance of someone who’d neverworried about money “This section here—” She pointed to the steep drop in front of them, making nomove this time to go down it At the base it spread twenty feet wide, perhaps thirty in length, in awicked maze of thorny vines and weeds as thick at the stem as her thumb “I want a pond.”

Cliff brought his attention back to her “A pond?”

She gave him a level look and stood her ground “Allow me one eccentricity, Mr Delaney Asmall one,” she continued before he could comment “There’s certainly enough room, and it seems to

me that this section here’s the worst It’s hardly more than a hole in the ground in a very awkwardplace Do you have an objection to water?”

Instead of answering, he studied the ground below them, running through the possibilities Thetruth was, she couldn’t have picked a better spot as far as the lay of the land and the angle to the

house It could be done, he mused It wouldn’t be an easy job, but it could be done And it would bevery effective

“It’s going to cost you,” he said at length “You’re going to be sinking a lot of cash into this

place If you’re weighing that against resale value, I can tell you, this property won’t be easy to sell.”

It snapped her patience She was tired, very tired, of having people suggest she didn’t knowwhat she was doing “Mr Delaney, I’m hiring you to do a job, not to advise me on real estate or myfinances If you can’t handle it, just say so and I’ll get someone else.”

His eyes narrowed The fingers on her arm tightened fractionally “I can handle it, Miss

Fitzgerald I’ll draw up an estimate and a contract They’ll be in the mail tomorrow If you still wantthe job done after you’ve looked them over, call my office.” Slowly, he released her arm, then handedher back the glass of tea He left her there, near the edge where the slope gave way to gully as heheaded back toward his truck “By the way,” he said without turning around, “you overwatered yourpansies.”

Maggie let out one long, simmering breath and dumped the tepid tea on the ground at her feet

Chapter Two

When she was alone, Maggie went back inside, through the back door, which creaked ominously

on its hinges She wasn’t going to think about Cliff Delaney In fact, she doubted if she’d see himagain He’d send crews out to deal with the actual work, and whatever they had to discuss would bedone via phone or letter Better that way, Maggie decided He’d been unfriendly, abrupt and

annoying, though his mouth had been attractive, she reflected, even kind

She was halfway through the kitchen when she remembered the glasses in her hand Turningback, she crossed the scarred linoleum to set them both in the sink, then leaned on the windowsill tolook out at the rise behind her house Even as she watched, a few loose stones and dirt slid down thewall A couple of hard rains, she mused, and half that bank would be at her back door A retainingwall Maggie nodded Cliff Delaney obviously knew his business

There was just enough breeze to carry a hint of spring to her Far back in the woods a bird shecouldn’t see sang out as though it would never stop Listening, she forgot the eroding wall and theexposed roots of trees that were much too close to its edge She forgot the rudeness, and the

attraction, of a stranger If she looked up, far up, she could see where the tops of the trees met the sky.She wondered how this view would change with the seasons and found herself impatient toexperience them all Perhaps she’d never realized how badly she’d needed a place to herself, time toherself, until she’d found it

With a sigh, Maggie moved away from the window It was time to get down to work if she was

to deliver the finished score as promised She walked down the hall where the wallpaper was

peeling and curled and turned into what had once been the back parlor It was now her music room.Boxes she hadn’t even thought of unpacking stood in a pile against one wall A few odd pieces

of furniture that had come with the house sat hidden under dustcovers The windows were

uncurtained, the floor was uncarpeted There were pale squares intermittently on the walls wherepictures had once hung In the center of the room, glossy and elegant, stood her baby grand A singlebox lay open beside it, and from this Maggie took a sheet of staff paper Tucking a pencil behind herear, she sat

For a moment she did nothing else, just sat in the silence while she let the music come and play

in her head She knew what she wanted for this segment—something dramatic, something strong andfull of power Behind her closed eyelids she could see the scene from the film sweep by It was up toher to underscore, to accentuate, to take the mood and make it music

Reaching out, she switched on the cassette tape and began

She let the notes build in strength as she continued to visualize the scene her music would

amplify She only worked on films she had a feeling for Though the Oscars told her she excelled inthis area of work, Maggie’s true affection was for the single song—words and music

Maggie had always compared the composing of a score to the building of a bridge First camethe blueprint, the overall plan Then the construction had to be done, slowly, meticulously, until eachend fit snugly on solid ground, a flawless arch in between It was a labor of precision

The single song was a painting, to be created as the mood dictated The single song could bewritten from nothing more than a phrasing of words or notes It could encapsulate mood, emotion or astory in a matter of minutes It was a labor of love

When she worked, she forgot the time, forgot everything but the careful structuring of notes to

mood Her fingers moved over the piano keys as she repeated the same segment again and again,changing perhaps no more than one note until her instincts told her it was right An hour passed, thentwo She didn’t grow weary or bored or impatient with the constant repetition Music was her

business, but it was also her lover

She might not have heard the knock if she hadn’t paused to rewind the tape Disoriented, sheignored it, waiting for the maid to answer before she recalled where she was

No maids, Maggie, she reminded herself No gardener, no cook It’s all up to you now The

thought pleased her If there was no one to answer to her, she had no one to answer to

Rising, she went back into the hall and down to the big front door She didn’t have to developthe country habit of leaving the doors unlocked In L.A., there’d been servants to deal with bolts andchains and security systems Maggie never gave them a thought Taking the knob in both hands, shetwisted and tugged She reminded herself to tell Mr Bog about the sticking problem as the door

swung open

On the porch stood a tall, prim-looking woman in her early fifties Her hair was a soft, uniformgray worn with more tidiness than style Faded blue eyes studied Maggie from behind rose-framedglasses If this was the welcome wagon lady, Maggie thought after a glance at the unhappy line of thewoman’s mouth, she didn’t seem thrilled with the job Much too used to strangers’ approaches to bereserved, Maggie tilted her head and smiled

“Hello, can I help you?”

“You are Miss Fitzgerald?” The voice was low and even, as subdued and inoffensive as herplain, pale coatdress

“Yes, I am.”

“I’m Louella Morgan.”

It took Maggie a moment; then the name clicked Louella Morgan, widow of William Morgan,former owner of the house that was now hers For an instant Maggie felt like an intruder; then sheshook the feeling away and extended her hand “Hello, Mrs Morgan Won’t you come in?”

“I don’t want to disturb you.”

“No, please.” As she spoke, she opened the door a bit wider “I met your daughter when wesettled on the house.”

“Yes, Joyce told me.” Louella’s gaze darted around and behind Maggie as she stepped over thethreshold “She never expected to sell so quickly The property had only been on the market a week.”

“I like to think it was fate.” Maggie put her weight against the door and pushed until she managed

to close it Definitely a job for Bog, she decided

“Fate?” Louella turned back from her study of the long, empty hall

“It just seemed to be waiting for me.” Though she found the woman’s direct, unsmiling stare odd,Maggie gestured toward the living room “Come in and sit down,” she invited “Would you like somecoffee? Something cold?”

“No, thank you I’ll stay only a minute.” Louella did wander into the living room, and thoughthere was a single sofa piled with soft, inviting pillows, she didn’t accept Maggie’s invitation to sit.She looked at the crumbling wallpaper, the cracked paint and the windows that glistened from

Maggie’s diligence with ammonia “I suppose I wanted to see the house again with someone living init.”

Maggie took a look at the almost-empty room Maybe she’d start stripping off the wallpaper nextweek “I guess it’ll be a few weeks more before it looks as though someone is.”

Louella didn’t seem to hear “I came here as a newlywed.”

She smiled then, but Maggie didn’t see anything happy in it The eyes, she thought, looked lost,

as if the woman had been lost for years “But then, my husband wanted something more modern, moreconvenient to town and his business So we moved, and he rented it out.”

Louella focused on Maggie again “Such a lovely, quiet spot,” she murmured “A pity it’s been

so neglected over the years.”

“It is a lovely spot,” Maggie agreed, struggling not to sound as uncomfortable as she felt “I’mhaving some work done on both the house and the land …” Her voice trailed off when Louella

wandered to the front window and stared out Heavens, Maggie thought, searching for something more to say, what have I got here? “Ah, of course I plan to do a lot of the painting and papering and

such myself.”

“The weeds have taken over,” Louella said with her back to the room

Maggie’s brows lifted and fell as she wondered what to do next “Yes, well, Cliff Delaney wasout this afternoon to take a look around.”

“Cliff.” Louella’s attention seemed to focus again as she turned back The light coming throughthe uncurtained windows made her seem more pale, more insubstantial “An interesting young man,rather rough-and-ready, but very clever He’ll do well for you here, for the land He’s a cousin of theMorgans, you know.” She paused and seemed to laugh, but very softly “Then, you’ll find many

Morgans and their kin scattered throughout the county.”

A cousin, Maggie mused Perhaps he’d been unfriendly because he didn’t think the propertyshould’ve been sold to an outsider Resolutely, she tried to push Cliff Delaney aside He didn’t have

to approve The land was hers

“The front lawn was lovely once,” Louella murmured

Maggie felt a stirring of pity “It will be again The front’s going to be cleared and planted Theback, too.” Wanting to reassure her, Maggie stepped closer Both women stood by the window now

“I’m going to have a rock garden, and there’ll be a pond where the gully is on the side.”

“A pond?” Louella turned and fixed her with another long stare “You’re going to clear out thegully?”

“Yes.” Uncomfortable again, Maggie shifted “It’s the perfect place.”

Louella ran a hand over the front of her purse as if she were wiping something away “I used tohave a rock garden Sweet William and azure Adams There was wisteria beneath my bedroom

window, and roses, red roses, climbing on a trellis.”

“I’d like to have seen it,” Maggie said gently “It must’ve been beautiful.”

“I have pictures.”

“Do you?” Struck with an idea, Maggie forgot her discomfort “Perhaps I could see them They’dhelp me decide just what to plant.”

“I’ll see that you get them You’re very kind to let me come in this way.” Louella took one lastscan of the room “The house holds memories.” When she walked out into the hall, Maggie went withher to tug open the front door again “Goodbye, Miss Fitzgerald.”

“Goodbye, Mrs Morgan.” Her pity stirred again, and Maggie reached out to touch the woman’sshoulder “Please, come again.”

Louella looked back, her smile very slight, her eyes very tired “Thank you.”

While Maggie watched, she walked to an old, well-preserved Lincoln, then drove slowly downthe hill Vaguely disturbed, Maggie went back into the music room She hadn’t met many residents ofMorganville yet, she mused, but they were certainly an interesting bunch

The noise brought Maggie out of a sound sleep into a drowsy, cranky state For a moment, as shetried to bury her head under the pillow, she thought she was in New York The groan and roar

sounded like a big, nasty garbage truck But she wasn’t in New York, she thought as she surfaced,rubbing her hands over her eyes She was in Morganville, and there weren’t any garbage trucks Hereyou piled your trash into the back of your car or pickup and hauled it to the county dump Maggie hadconsidered this the height of self-sufficiency

Still, something was out there

She lay on her back for a full minute, staring up at the ceiling The sunlight slanted, low and thin,across her newly purchased quilt She’d never been a morning person, nor did she intend to havecountry life change that intimate part of her nature Warily, she turned her head to look at the clock:7:05 Good heavens

It was a struggle, but she pushed herself into a sitting position and stared blankly around theroom Here, too, boxes were piled, unopened There was a precariously stacked pile of books andmagazines on decorating and landscaping beside the bed On the wall were three fresh strips of

wallpaper, an ivory background with tiny violets, that she’d hung herself More rolls and paste werepushed into a corner The noise outside was a constant, irritating roar

Resigned, Maggie got out of bed She stumbled over a pair of shoes, swore, then went to thewindow She’d chosen that room as her own because she could see out over the rolling pitch of whatwould be her front yard, over the tops of the trees on her own property to the valley beyond

There was a farmhouse in the distance with a red roof and a smoking chimney Beside it was along, wide field that had just been plowed and planted If she looked farther still, she could see thepeaks of mountains faintly blue and indistinct in the morning mist The window on the connecting wallwould give her a view of the intended pond and the line of pines that would eventually be planted

Maggie pushed the window up the rest of the way, struggling as it stuck a bit The early-springair had a pleasant chill She could still hear the constant low sound of a running engine Curious, shepressed her face against the screen, only to have it topple out of the window frame and fall to theporch below One more thing for Mr Bog to see to, Maggie thought with a sigh as she leaned throughthe opening Just then the yellow bulk of a bulldozer rounded the bend in her lane and broke into

view

So, she thought, watching it inch its way along, leveling and pushing at rock and dirt, Cliff

Delaney was a man of his word She’d received the promised estimate and contract two days after hisvisit When she’d called his office, Maggie had spoken to an efficient-sounding woman who’d toldher the work would begin the first of the week

And it’s Monday, she reflected, leaning her elbows on the sill Very prompt Narrowing hereyes, she looked more closely at the man on top of the bulldozer His build was too slight, she

decided, his hair not quite dark enough She didn’t have to see his face to know it wasn’t Cliff

Shrugging, she turned away from the window Why should she have thought Cliff Delaney wouldwork his own machines? And why should she have wanted it to be him? Hadn’t she already decidedshe wouldn’t see him again? She’d hired his company to do a job; the job would be done, and she’dwrite out a check That was all there was to it

Maggie attributed her crankiness to the early awakening as she snatched up her robe and headedfor the shower

Two hours later, fortified with the coffee she’d made for herself and the bulldozer operator,Maggie was on her knees on the kitchen floor Since she was up at a barbaric hour, she thought it best

to do something physical On the counter above her sat her cassette tape player The sound of her

score, nearly completed, all but drowned out the whine of machinery She let herself flow with itwhile words to the title song she’d yet to compose flitted in and out of her mind.

While she let her thoughts flow with the music she’d created, Maggie chipped away at the worntile on the kitchen floor True, her bedroom had only one wall partially papered, and only the ceiling

in the upstairs bath was painted, and there were two more steps to be stripped and lacquered before

the main stairway was finished, but she worked in her own way, at her own speed She found herselfjumping from project to project, leaving one partially done and leaping headlong into the next Thisway, she reasoned, she could watch the house come together piece by piece rather than have onecompleted, out-of-place room

Besides, she’d gotten a peek at the flooring beneath the tile when she’d inadvertently knocked anedge off a corner Curiosity had done the rest

When Cliff walked to the back door, he was already annoyed It was ridiculous for him to bewasting time here, with all the other jobs his firm had in progress Yet he was here He’d knocked atthe front door for almost five minutes He knew Maggie was inside, her car was in the driveway, andthe bulldozer operator had told him she’d brought out coffee an hour or so before Didn’t it occur toher that someone usually knocked when they wanted something?

The music coming through the open windows caught his attention, and his imagination He’dnever heard the melody before It was compelling, sexy, moody A lone piano, no backdrop of strings

or brass, but it had the power of making the listener want to stop and hear every note For a moment

he did stop, both disturbed and moved

Shifting the screen he’d found into his other hand, Cliff started to knock Then he saw her

She was on her hands and knees, prying up pieces of linoleum with what looked like a puttyknife Her hair was loose, falling over one shoulder so that her face was hidden behind it The deep,rich sable brown picked up hints of gold from the sunlight that streamed through the open door andwindow

Gray corduroys fit snugly over her hips, tapering down to bare ankles and feet A vivid redsuede shirt was tucked into the waist He recognized the shirt as one sold in exclusive shops for veryexclusive prices Her wrists and hands looked impossibly delicate against it Cliff was scowling atthem when Maggie got too enthusiastic with the putty knife and scraped her knuckle against a corner

of the tile

“What the hell are you doing?” he demanded, swinging the door open and striding in beforeMaggie had a chance to react She’d barely put the knuckle to her mouth in an instinctive move when

he was crouched beside her and grabbing her hand

“It’s nothing,” she said automatically “Just a scratch.”

“You’re lucky you didn’t slice it, the way you’re hacking at that tile.” Though his voice wasrough and impatient, his hand was gentle She left hers in it

Yes, his hand was gentle, though rough-edged, like his voice, but this time she could see hiseyes They were gray; smoky, secret Evening mists came to her mind Mists that were sometimesdangerous but always compelling That was the sort of mist she’d always believed had cloaked

Brigadoon for a hundred years at a time Maggie decided she could like him, in a cautious sort ofway

“Who’d be stupid enough to put linoleum over this?” With the fingers of her free hand, she

skimmed over the hardwood she’d exposed “Lovely, isn’t it? Or it will be when it’s sanded andsealed.”

“Get Bog to deal with it,” Cliff ordered “You don’t know what you’re doing.”

So everyone said Maggie withdrew a bit, annoyed by the phrase “Why should he have all thefun? Besides, I’m being careful.”

“I can see that.” He turned her hand over so that she saw the scrape over her thumb It infuriatedhim to see the delicacy marred “Doesn’t someone in your profession have to be careful with theirhands?”

“They’re insured,” she tossed back “I think I can probably hit a few chords, even with a wound

as serious as this.” She pulled her hand out of his “Did you come here to criticize me, Mr Delaney,

or did you have something else in mind?”

“I came to check on the job.” Which wasn’t necessary, he admitted In any case, why should itmatter to him if she was careless enough to hurt her hand? She was just a woman who had toucheddown in his territory and would be gone again before the leaves were full-blown with summer Hewas going to have to remember that, and the fact that she didn’t interest him personally Shifting, hepicked up the screen he’d dropped when he’d taken her hand “I found this outside.”

It wasn’t often her voice took on that regal tone He seemed to nudge it out of her “Thank you.”She took the screen and leaned it against the stove

“Your road’ll be blocked most of the day I hope you weren’t planning on going anywhere.”Maggie gave him a level look that held a hint of challenge “I’m not going anywhere, Mr

Delaney.”

He inclined his head “Fine.” The music on the tape player changed tempo It was more driving, more primitive It seemed something to be played on hot, moonless nights It drew him,

hard-pulled at him “What is that?” Cliff demanded “I’ve never heard it before.”

Maggie glanced up at the recorder “It’s a movie score I’m composing That’s the melody for thetitle song.” Because it had given her a great deal of trouble, she frowned at the revolving tape “Doyou like it?”

He could have said nothing more perfect Her smile flashed, a quick, stunning smile that left himstaring at her as though he’d been struck by lightning “Yes Yes, that’s exactly what it’s supposed todo.” In her enthusiasm she shifted Their knees brushed “I’m trying for something very basic withthis It has to set the mood for a film about a passionate relationship—an intensely passionate

relationship between two people who seem to have nothing in common but an uncontrollable desirefor each other One of them will kill because of it.”

She trailed off, lost in the music and the mood She could see it in vivid colors—scarlets,

purples She could feel it, like the close, sultry air on a hot summer night Then she frowned, and as if

on cue, the music stopped From the tape came a sharp, pungent curse, then silence

“I lost something in those last two bars,” she muttered “It was like—” she gestured with bothhands, bringing them up, turning them over, then dropping them again “—something came unmeshed Ithas to build to desperation, but it has to be more subtle than that Passion at the very edge of control.”

“Do you always write like that?” Cliff was studying her when she focused on him again, studyingher as he had her land—thoroughly, with an eye both for detail and an overview

She sat back on her haunches, comfortable now with a conversation on her own turf He couldhardly frustrate her in a discussion of music She’d lived with it, in it, all her life “Like what?” shecountered.

“With the emphasis on mood and emotions rather than notes and timing.”

Her brows lifted With one hand, she pushed back the hair that swept across her cheek She wore

an amethyst on her finger, wine-colored, square It caught the light, holding it until she dropped herhand again As she thought it over, it occurred to her that no one, not even her closest associates, hadever defined her style so cleanly It pleased her, though she didn’t know why, that he had done so

“Yes,” she said simply

He didn’t like what those big, soft eyes could do to him Cliff rose “That’s why your music isgood.”

Maggie gave a quick laugh, not at the compliment, but at the grudging tone with which he

delivered it “So, you can say something nice, after all.”

“When it’s appropriate.” He watched her stand, noting that she moved with the sort of fluidityhe’d always associated with tall, willowy women “I admire your music.”

Again, it was the tone, rather than the words, that spoke to her This time it touched off

annoyance, rather than humor “And little else that has to do with me.”

“I don’t know you,” Cliff countered

“You didn’t like me when you drove up that hill the other day.” With her temper rising, Maggieput her hands on her hips and faced him squarely “I get the impression you didn’t like me years

before we met.”

That was direct, Cliff decided Maggie Fitzgerald, glamour girl from the Coast, didn’t believe inevasions Neither did he “I have a problem with people who live their lives on silver platters I’vetoo much respect for reality.”

“Silver platters,” Maggie repeated in a voice that was much, much too quiet “In other words, Iwas born into affluence, therefore, I can’t understand the real world.”

He didn’t know why he wanted to smile Perhaps it was the way color flooded her face Perhaps

it was because she stood nearly a foot beneath him but gave every appearance of being ready to

Indian-wrestle and win Yet he didn’t smile Cliff had the impression that if you gave an inch to thislady, you’d soon be begging to give a mile “That about sums it up The gravel for the lane’ll be

delivered and spread by five.”

“Sums it up?” Accustomed to ending a conversation when she chose, Maggie grabbed his arm as

he started to turn for the door “You’re a narrow-minded snob, and you know nothing about my life.”Cliff looked down at the delicate hand against his tanned muscled arm The amethyst glowed up

at him “Miss Fitzgerald, everyone in the country knows about your life.”

“That is one of the most unintelligent statements I’ve ever heard.” She made one final attempt tocontrol her temper, then forgot it “Let me tell you something, Mr Delaney—” The phone interruptedwhat would have been a stream of impassioned abuse Maggie ended up swearing “You stay there,”she ordered as she turned to the wall phone

Cliff’s brows lifted at the command Slowly, he leaned against the kitchen counter He’d stay, hedecided Not because she’d told him to, but because he’d discovered he wanted to hear what she had

to say

Maggie yanked the receiver from the wall and barked into it “Hello.”

“Well, it’s nice to hear that country life’s agreeing with you.”

“C.J.” She struggled to hold down her temper She wanted neither questions nor I-told-you-sos

“Sorry, you caught me in the middle of a philosophical discussion.” Though she heard Cliff’s quicksnort of laughter, she ignored it “Something up, C.J.?”

“Well, I hadn’t heard from you in a couple of days—”

“I told you I’d call once a week Will you stop worrying?”

“You know I can’t.”

She had to laugh “No, I know you can’t If it relieves your mind, I’m having the lane fixed even

as we speak The next time you visit, you won’t have to worry about your muffler falling off.”

“It doesn’t relieve my mind,” C.J grumbled “I have nightmares about that roof caving in on yourhead The damn place is falling apart.”

“The place is not falling apart.” She turned, inadvertently kicking the screen and sending it

clattering across the floor At that moment, her eyes met Cliff’s He was still leaning against the

counter, still close enough to the back door to be gone in two strides But now he was grinning

Maggie looked at the screen, then back at Cliff, and covered her mouth to smother a giggle

“What was that noise?” C.J demanded

“Noise?” Maggie swallowed “I didn’t hear any noise.” She covered the mouth of the receiverwith her hand when Cliff laughed again “Shh,” she whispered, smiling “C.J.,” she said back into thephone, knowing she needed to distract him, “the score’s nearly finished.”

“When?” The response was immediate and predictable She sent Cliff a knowing nod

“For the most part, it’s polished I’m a little hung up on the title song If you let me get back towork, the tape’ll be in your office next week.”

“Why don’t you deliver it yourself? We’ll have lunch.”

“Forget it.”

He sighed “Just thought I’d try To show you my heart’s in the right place, I sent you a present.”

“A present? The Godiva?”

“You’ll have to wait and see,” he said evasively “It’ll be there by tomorrow morning I expectyou to be so touched you’ll catch the next plane to L.A to thank me in person.”

“Mr Delaney—”

“Cliff,” he corrected

She smiled, telling herself to relax “Cliff We seem to’ve gotten off on the wrong foot for somereason Maybe if we concentrate on something that interests us both—my land—we won’t keep

rubbing each other the wrong way.”

He found it an interesting phrase, particularly since he was imagining what it would feel like torun his hands over her skin “All right,” he agreed as he straightened from the counter He crossed toher, wondering who he was testing, himself or her When he stopped, she was trapped between him

and the stove.

He didn’t touch her, but both of them could sense what it would be like Hard hands, soft skin.Warmth turning quickly to heat Mouth meeting mouth with confidence, with knowledge, with passion

“I consider your land a challenge.” He said it quietly, his eyes on hers She didn’t think of mistsnow but of smoke—of smoke and fire “Which is why I’ve decided to give this project quite a bit of

my personal attention.”

Her nerves were suddenly strung tight Maggie didn’t back away, because she was almost

certain that was what he wanted Instead, she met his gaze If her eyes weren’t calm, if they’d

darkened with the first traces of desire, she couldn’t prevent it “I can’t argue with that.”

“No.” He smiled a little If he stayed, even moments longer, he knew he’d find out how her lipstasted That might be the biggest mistake he’d ever make Turning, he went to the back door “CallBog.” He tossed this over his shoulder as he pushed the screen door open “Your fingers belong onpiano keys, not on putty knives.”

Maggie let out a long, tense breath when the screen door slammed Did he do that on purpose,she wondered as she pressed a hand to her speeding heart Or was it a natural talent of his to turnwomen into limp rags? Shaking her head, she told herself to forget it If there was one thing she hadexperience in, it was in avoiding and evading the professional lothario She was definitely

uninterested in going a few rounds with Morganville’s leading contender

With a scowl, she dropped back to her knees and picked up the putty knife She began to hack atthe tile with a vengeance Maggie Fitzgerald could take care of herself

Chapter Three

For the third morning in a row, Maggie was awakened by the sound of men and machinery

outside her windows It occurred to her that she’d hardly had the chance to become used to the quietwhen the chaos had started

The bulldozer had been replaced by chain saws, industrial weed eaters and trucks While shewas far from getting used to the early risings, she was resigned By seven-fifteen she had draggedherself out of the shower and was staring at her face in the bathroom mirror

Not so good, she decided, studying her own sleepy eyes But then she’d been up until two

working on the score Displeased, she ran a hand over her face She’d never considered pamperingher skin a luxury or a waste of time It was simply something she did routinely, the same way she’dswim twenty laps every morning in California

She’d been neglecting the basics lately, Maggie decided, squinting at her reflection Had it beenover two months since she’d been in a salon? Ruefully, she tugged at the bangs that swept over herforehead It was showing, and it was time to do something about it

After wrapping her still-damp hair in a towel, she pulled open the mirrored medicine-cabinetdoor The nearest Elizabeth Arden’s was seventy miles away There were times, Maggie told herself

as she smeared on a clay mask, that you had to fend for yourself

She was just rinsing her hands when the sound of quick, high-pitched barking reached her C.J.’spresent, Maggie thought wryly, wanted his breakfast In her short terry-cloth robe, which was raveled

at the hem, her hair wrapped in a checked towel and the clay mask hardening on her face, she starteddownstairs to tend to the demanding gift her agent had flown out to her She had just reached the

bottom landing when a knock on the door sent the homely bulldog puppy into a frenzy

“Calm down,” she ordered, scooping him up under one arm “All this excitement and I haven’thad my coffee yet Give me a break.” The pup lowered his head and growled when she pulled on thefront door Definitely city-oriented, she thought, trying to calm the pup She wondered if C.J hadplanned it that way The door resisted, sticking Swearing, Maggie set down the dog and yanked withboth hands

The door swung open, carrying her a few steps back with the momentum The pup dashed

through the closest doorway, poking his head around the frame and snarling as if he meant business.Cliff stared at Maggie as she stood, panting, in the hall She blew out a breath, wondering what couldhappen next “I thought country life was supposed to be peaceful.”

Cliff grinned, tucking his thumbs in the front pockets of his jeans “Not necessarily Get you up?”

“I’ve been up for quite some time,” she said loftily

“Mmm-hmm.” His gaze skimmed over her legs, nicely exposed by the brief robe, before it

lingered on the puppy crouched in the doorway Her legs were longer, he mused, than one wouldthink, considering the overall size of her “Friend of yours?”

Maggie looked at the bulldog, which was making fierce sounds in his throat while keeping acareful distance “A present from my agent.”

“What’s his name?”

Maggie sent the cowering puppy a wry look “Killer.”

Cliff watched the pup disappear behind the wall again “Very apt You figure to train him as aguard dog?”

“I’m going to teach him to attack music critics.” She lifted a hand to push it through her hair—anold habit—and discovered the towel Just as abruptly, she remembered the rest of her appearance.One hand flew to her face and found the thin layer of hardened clay “Oh, my God,” Maggie

murmured as Cliff’s grin widened “Oh, damn.” Turning, she raced for the stairs “Just a minute.” Hewas treated to an intriguing glimpse of bare thighs as she dashed upstairs

Ten minutes later, she walked back down, perfectly composed Her hair was swept back at theside with mother-of-pearl combs; her face was lightly touched with makeup She’d pulled on the firstthing she’d come to in her still-unpacked trunk The tight black jeans proved an interesting contrast tothe bulky white sweatshirt Cliff sat on the bottom landing, sending the cowardly puppy into ecstasy

by rubbing his belly Maggie frowned down at the crown of Cliff’s head

“You weren’t going to say a word, were you?”

He continued to rub the puppy, not bothering to look up “About what?”

Maggie narrowed her eyes and folded her arms under her breasts “Nothing Was there

something you wanted to discuss this morning?”

He wasn’t precisely sure why that frosty, regal tone appealed to him Perhaps he just liked

knowing he had the ability to make her use it “Still want that pond?”

“Yes, I still want the pond,” she snapped, then gritted her teeth to prevent herself from doing soagain “I don’t make a habit of changing my mind.”

“Fine We’ll be clearing out the gully this afternoon.” Rising, he faced her while the puppy satexpectantly at his feet “You didn’t call Bog about the kitchen floor.”

Confusion came and went in her eyes “How do you—”

“It’s easy to find things out in Morganville.”

“Well, it’s none of your—”

“Hard to keep your business to yourself in small towns,” Cliff interrupted again It amused him

to hear her breath huff out in frustration “Fact is, you’re about the top news item in town these days.Everybody wonders what the lady from California’s doing up on this mountain The more you keep toyourself,” he added, “the more they wonder.”

“Is that so?” Maggie tilted her head and stepped closer “And you?” she countered “Do youwonder?”

Cliff knew a challenge when he heard one, and knew he’d answer it in his own time

Impulsively, he cupped her chin in his hand and ran his thumb over her jawline She didn’t flinch ordraw back, but became very still “Nice skin,” he murmured, sweeping his gaze along the path histhumb took “Very nice You take good care of it, Maggie I’ll take care of your land.”

With this, he left her precisely as she was—arms folded, head tilted back, eyes astonished

By ten, Maggie decided it wasn’t going to be the quiet, solitary sort of day she’d moved to thecountry for The men outside shouted above the machinery to make themselves heard Trucks cameand went down her newly graveled lane She could comfort herself that in a few weeks that part of thedisruption would be over

She took three calls from the Coast from friends who wondered how and what she was doing

By the third call, she was a bit testy from explaining she was scraping linoleum, papering walls,

painting woodwork and enjoying it She left the phone off the hook and went back to her putty knifeand kitchen floor

More than half of the wood was exposed now The progress excited her enough that she decided

to stick with this one job until it was completed The floor would be beautiful, and, she added,

thinking of Cliff’s comments, she’d have done it herself.

Maggie had barely scraped off two more inches when there was a knock behind her She turnedher head, ready to flare if it was Cliff Delaney returned to taunt her Instead, she saw a tall, slenderwoman of her own age with soft brown hair and pale blue eyes As Maggie studied Joyce MorganAgee, she wondered why she hadn’t seen the resemblance to Louella before

“Mrs Agee.” Maggie rose, brushing at the knees of her jeans “Please, come in I’m sorry.” Hersneakers squeaked as she stepped on a thin layer of old glue “The floor’s a bit sticky.”

“I don’t mean to disturb your work.” Joyce stood uncertainly in the doorway, eyeing the floor “Iwould’ve called, but I was on my way home from Mother’s.”

Joyce’s pumps were trim and stylish Maggie felt the glue pull at the bottom of her old sneakers

“We can talk outside, if you don’t mind.” Taking the initiative, Maggie walked out into the sunshine

“Things are a little confused around here right now.”

“Yes.” They heard one of the workers call to a companion, punctuating his suggestion with

good-natured swearing Joyce glanced over in their direction before she turned back to Maggie

“You’re not wasting any time, I see.”

“No.” Maggie laughed and eyed the crumbling dirt wall beside them “I’ve never been verypatient For some reason, I’m more anxious to have the outside the way I want it than the inside.”

“You couldn’t have picked a better company,” Joyce murmured, glancing over at one of the

trucks with Delaney’s on the side.

Maggie followed her gaze but kept her tone neutral “So I’m told.”

“I want you to know I’m really glad you’re doing so much to the place.” Joyce began to fiddlewith the strap of her shoulder bag “I can hardly remember living here I was a child when we moved,but I hate waste.” With a little smile, she looked around again and shook her head “I don’t think Icould live out here I like being in town, with neighbors close by and other children for my children toplay with Of course, Stan, my husband, likes being available all the time.”

It took Maggie a moment; then she remembered “Oh, your husband’s the sheriff, isn’t he?”

“That’s right Morganville’s a quiet town, nothing like Los Angeles, but it keeps him busy.” Shesmiled, but Maggie wondered why she sensed strain “We’re just not city people.”

“No.” Maggie smiled, too “I guess I’ve discovered I’m not, either.”

“I don’t understand how you could give up—” Joyce seemed to catch herself “I guess what Imeant was, this must be such a change for you after living in a place like Beverly Hills.”

“A change,” Maggie agreed Was she sensing undercurrents here, too, as she had with Louella’sdreaminess? “It was one I wanted.”

“Yes, well, you know I’m glad you bought the place, and so quickly Stan was a little upset with

my putting it on the market when he was out of town, but I couldn’t see it just sitting here Who knows,

if you hadn’t come along so fast, he might’ve talked me out of selling it.”

“Then we can both be grateful I saw the sign when I did.” Mentally, Maggie was trying to figureout the logistics of the situation It seemed the house had belonged exclusively to Joyce, without herhusband or her mother having any claim Fleetingly, she wondered why Joyce hadn’t rented or soldthe property before

“The real reason I came by, Miss Fitzgerald, is my mother She told me she was here a few daysago.”

“Yes, she’s a lovely woman.”

“Yes.” Joyce looked back toward the men working, then took a deep breath Maggie no longerhad to wonder if she was sensing undercurrents She was sure of it “It’s more than possible she’ll

drop in on you again I’d like to ask you a favor, that is, if she begins to bother you, if you’d tell meinstead of her.”

“Why should she bother me?”

Joyce let out a sound that was somewhere between fatigue and frustration “Mother often dwells

on the past She’s never completely gotten over my father’s death She makes some people

Maggie remembered the lost eyes, the unhappy mouth Pity stirred again “All right, if she

bothers me, I’ll tell you.”

The relief in Joyce’s face was quick and very plain “I appreciate it, Miss Fitzgerald.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean—”

“I know you didn’t Come back when I’ve done something with that floor, and we’ll have somecoffee.”

“I’d like to, really Oh, I nearly forgot.” She reached into the big canvas bag on her shoulder andpulled out a manila envelope “Mother said you wanted to see these Some pictures of the property.”

“Yes.” Pleased, Maggie took the envelope She hadn’t thought Louella would remember or

bother to put them together for her “I hoped they might give me some ideas.”

“Mother said you could keep them as long as you liked.” Joyce hesitated, fiddling again with thestrap of her bag “I have to get back My youngest gets home from kindergarten at noon, and Stan

sometimes comes home for lunch I haven’t done a thing to the house I hope I see you sometime intown.”

“I’m sure you will.” Maggie tucked the envelope under her arm “Give my best to your mother.”Maggie started back into the house, but as she put her hand on the doorknob, she noticed Cliffcrossing to Joyce Curiosity had her stopping to watch as Cliff took both the brunette’s hands in hisown Though she couldn’t hear the conversation over the din of motors, it was obvious that they kneweach other well There was a gentleness on Cliff’s face Maggie hadn’t seen before, and something sheinterpreted as concern He bent down close, as if Joyce were speaking very softly, then touched herhair The touch of a brother? Maggie wondered Or a lover?

As she watched, Joyce shook her head, apparently fumbling with the door handle before she gotinto the car Cliff leaned into the window for a moment Were they arguing? Maggie wondered Wasthe tension she sensed real or imaginary? Fascinated with the silent scene being played out in herdriveway, Maggie watched as Cliff withdrew from the window and Joyce backed out to drive away.Before she could retreat inside, Cliff turned, and their gazes locked

There were a hundred feet separating them, and the air was full of the sounds of men and

machines The sun was strong enough to make her almost too warm in the sweatshirt, yet she felt onequick, unexpected chill race up her spine Perhaps it was hostility she felt Maggie tried to tell herself

it was hostility and not the first dangerous flutters of passion

There was a temptation to cross those hundred feet and test both of them Even the thought of itstirred her blood He didn’t move He didn’t take his eyes from her With fingers gone suddenly

numb, Maggie twisted the handle and went inside

Two hours later, Maggie went out again She’d never been one to retreat from a challenge, fromher emotions or from trouble Cliff Delaney seemed connected with all three While she’d scrapedlinoleum, Maggie had lectured herself on letting Cliff intimidate her for no reason other than his beingpowerfully male and sexy

And different, she’d admitted Different from most of the men she’d encountered in her

profession He didn’t fawn—far from it He didn’t pour on the charm He wasn’t impressed with hisown physique, looks or sophistication It must have been that difference that had made her not quitecertain how to handle him

A very direct, very frank business approach, she decided as she circled around the back of thehouse Maggie paused to look at the bank fronting her house

The vines, briars and thick sumac were gone Piles of rich, dark topsoil were being spread overwhat had been a tangled jungle of neglect The tree that had leaned toward her house was gone, stumpand all Two men, backs glistening with sweat, were setting stone in a low-spreading wall where theedge of the slope met the edge of the lawn

Cliff Delaney ran a tight ship, Maggie concluded, and made her way through the new dirt towardthe side yard Here, too, the worst had been cleared out An enormous bearded man in bib overallssat atop a big yellow backhoe as easily as another might sit in an armchair At the push of a lever, thedigger went down into the gully, bit into earth and rock and came up full

Maggie shaded her eyes and watched the procedure while the puppy circled her legs and snarled

at everything in sight Each time the digger would open its claws to drop its load, the dog would send

up a ruckus of barks Laughing, Maggie crouched down to scratch his ears and soothe him

“Don’t be a coward, Killer I won’t let it get you.”

“I wouldn’t get any closer,” Cliff said from behind her

She turned her head, squinting against the sun “This is close enough.” Disliking the disadvantage

of looking up and into the sun, Maggie stood “You seem to be making progress.”

“We need to get the plants in and the wall of this thing solid—” he gestured toward the gully “—before the rain hits Otherwise, you’ll have a real mess on your hands.”

“I see.” Because he wore the frustrating tinted glasses again, she turned from him to watch thebackhoe work “You certainly have a large staff.”

Cliff’s thumbs went into his pockets “Large enough.” He’d told himself he’d imagined that

powerful sexual pull hours before Now, feeling it again, he couldn’t deny it

She wasn’t what he wanted, yet he wanted her She wasn’t what he would have chosen, yet hewas choosing her He could turn away logic until he’d learned what it was like to touch her

Maggie was very aware of how close they stood The stirring she’d felt hours before began tobuild again, slowly, seductively, until she felt her whole body tense with it She understood that youcould want someone you didn’t know, someone you passed on the street It all had to do with

chemistry, but her chemistry had never reacted this way before She had a wild urge to turn into hisarms, to demand or offer the fulfillment, or whatever it was, that simmered between them It wassomething that offered excitement, and pleasure she had only glimpsed before So she did turn,

completely uncertain as to what she would say.

“I don’t think I like what’s happening here.”

Cliff didn’t pretend to misunderstand her Neither of their minds was on the pond or the machine

“Do you have a choice?”

Maggie frowned, wishing she was more certain of her moves He wasn’t like the men she’dknown before; therefore, the standard rules didn’t apply “I think so I moved here because it waswhere I wanted to live, where I wanted to work But I also moved here because I wanted to be on myown I intend to do all those things.”

Cliff studied her a moment, then gave the backhoe driver an absent wave as he shut off the

machine to take his lunch break “I took this job because I wanted to work this land I intend to do it.”Though she didn’t feel the slightest lessening of tension, Maggie nodded “Then we understandeach other.”

As she started to turn away, Cliff put a hand on her shoulder, holding her still “I think we bothunderstand quite a bit.”

The muscles in her stomach tightened and loosened like a nervous fist With his fingers so light

on the bulky sweatshirt, she shouldn’t have felt anything But hundreds of pulses sprang to life in herbody The air seemed to grow closer, hotter, the sounds of men more distant “I don’t know what youmean.”

“Yes, you do.”

Yes, she did “I don’t know anything about you,” Maggie managed

Cliff caught the tips of her hair in his fingers “I can’t say the same.”

Maggie’s temper flared, though she knew when she was being baited “So, you believe

everything you read in the tabloids and glossies.” She tossed her head to free her hair from his

fingers “I’m surprised that a man who’s obviously so successful and talented could be so ignorant.”Cliff acknowledged the hit with a nod “I’m surprised a woman who’s obviously so successfuland talented could be so foolish.”

“Foolish? What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”

“It seems foolish to me to encourage the press to report every area of your life.”

She clenched her teeth and tried deep breathing Neither worked “I don’t encourage the press to

do anything.”

“You don’t discourage them,” Cliff countered

“Discouragement is encouragement,” she tossed back Folding her arms under her breasts as

she’d done earlier, she stared out over the open gully “Why am I defending myself?” she muttered

“You don’t know anything about it I don’t need you to know anything about it.”

“I know you gave an interview about yourself and your husband weeks after his death.” He heardher quick intake of breath even as he cursed himself for saying something so personal, and so

uncalled-for

“Do you have any idea how the press hammered at me during those weeks?” Her voice was lowand strained, and she no longer looked at him “Do you know all the garbage they were printing?” Herfingers tightened on her own arms “I chose a reporter I could trust, and I gave the most honest, moststraightforward interview I could manage, knowing it was my only chance to keep things from sinkinglower That interview was for Jerry It was the only thing I had left to give him.”

He’d wanted to prod, perhaps even to prick, but he hadn’t wanted to hurt “I’m sorry.” Cliff puthis hand on her shoulder again, but she jerked away

“Forget it.”

This time he took both of her shoulders, turning her firmly to face him “I don’t forget blowsbelow the belt, especially when I’m the one doing the punching.”

She waited to speak until she was certain she had some control again “I’ve survived hits before

My advice to you is not to criticize something you have no capacity for understanding.”

“I apologized.” He didn’t release her shoulders when she tried to draw away “But I’m not verygood at following advice.”

Maggie became still again Somehow they had gotten closer, so that now their thighs brushed.The combination of anger and desire was becoming too strong to ignore “Then you and I don’t haveany more to say to each other.”

“You’re wrong.” His voice was very quiet, very compelling “We haven’t begun to say all there

is to say.”

“You work for me—”

“I work for myself,” Cliff corrected

She understood that kind of pride, admired it But admiration wouldn’t remove his hands fromher shoulders “I’m paying you to do a job.”

“You’re paying my company That’s business.”

“It’s going to be our only business.”

“Wrong again,” he murmured, but released her

Maggie opened her mouth to hurl something back at him, but the dog began to bark in quick,

excited yelps She decided turning her back on him to investigate her pet was a much grander insultthan the verbal one she’d planned Without a word, she began to make her way around the slope of thegully to the pile of earth and rock and debris the backhoe had dumped

“All right, Killer.” The going was so rough that she swore under her breath as she stumbled overstones “You’ll never find anything worthwhile in that pile, anyway.”

Ignoring her, the puppy continued to dig, his barking muffled as his nose went farther in, his

backside wriggling with either effort or delight in the new game

“Cut it out.” She bent to pull him out of the heap and ended up sitting down hard “Damn it,

Killer.” Staying as she was, she grabbed the dog with one hand, dragging him back and unearthing asmall avalanche of rock

“Will you be careful?” Cliff shouted from above her, knowing she’d been lucky not to have one

of the rocks bounce off her shin

“It’s the stupid dog!” Maggie shouted back as she lost her grip on him again “God knows what

he thinks is so fascinating about this mess Nothing but dirt and rocks,” she muttered, pushing at thepile that had landed near her hip

“Well, grab him and get back up here before you’re both hurt.”

“Yeah,” she muttered under her breath “You’re a big help.”

Disgusted, she started to struggle up when her fingers slid into the worn, rounded rock her handhad rested on Hollow, she thought curiously Her attention torn between the gully and the dog’s

unrelenting barks, Maggie glanced down

Then she began to scream, loud and long enough to send the puppy racing for cover

Cliff’s first thought as he raced down the slope to her was snakes When he reached her, he

dragged her up and into his arms in an instinctive move of protection She’d stopped screaming, andthough her breathing was shallow, Maggie grabbed his shirt before he could carry her back up theslope “Bones,” she whispered Closing her eyes, she dropped her head on his shoulder “Oh, myGod.”

Cliff looked down and saw what the machine and dog had unearthed Mixed with the rock anddebris was a pile of what might have been mistaken for long white sticks layered with dirt.

But lying on the bones, inches from where Maggie had sat, was a human skull

Chapter Four

“I’m all right.” Maggie sat at the kitchen table and gripped the glass of water Cliff had handedher When the pain in her fingers finally registered, she relaxed them a bit “I feel like an idiot,

screaming that way.”

She was still pale, he noted Though the hands on the glass were steady now, they were stillwhite at the knuckles Her eyes were wide and shocked, suddenly too big for the rest of her face Hestarted to stroke her hair, then stuck his own hands in his pockets “A natural enough reaction.”

“I guess.” She looked up and managed a shaky smile She was cold, but prayed she wouldn’tbegin to shiver in front of him “I’ve never found myself in that sort of … situation before.”

Cliff lifted a brow “Neither have I.”

“No?” Somehow she’d wanted to think it had happened before If it had, it might make it lesshorrible—and less personal She looked down at the floor, not realizing until that moment that the doglay across her feet, whimpering “But don’t you dig up a lot of—” She hesitated, not sure just how shewanted to phrase it “Things,” Maggie decided weakly, “in your line of work?”

She was reaching, Cliff thought, and whether she knew it or not, those big brown eyes were

pleading with him for some sort of easy explanation He didn’t have one to give her “Not that kind ofthing.”

Their gazes held for one long, silent moment before Maggie nodded If there was one thing she’dlearned in the hard, competitive business she’d chosen, it was to handle things as they came “So,neither of us has a tidy explanation.” The little expulsion of breath was the last sign of weakness sheintended to show him “I guess the next step is the police.”

“Yeah.” The more determined she became to be calm, the more difficult it became for him Shewas weakening something in him that he was determined to keep objective His hands were balledinto fists inside his pockets in his struggle not to touch her Distance was the quickest defense “You’dbetter call,” Cliff said briskly “I’ll go out and make sure the crew keeps clear of the gully.”

Again, her answer was a nod Maggie watched as he crossed to the screen door and pushed itopen There he hesitated He’d have cursed if he’d understood what it was he wanted to swear at.When he looked back, she saw the concern on his face she’d seen when he’d spoken to Joyce

“Maggie, are you all right?”

The question, and the tone, helped her to settle Perhaps it had something to do with her knowingjust what it was like to be pressured by another’s weakness “I will be Thanks.” She waited until thescreen door banged shut behind him before she dropped her head on the table

Good heavens, what had she walked into here? People didn’t find bodies in their front yard C.J.would’ve said it was totally uncivilized Maggie choked back a hysterical giggle and straightened.The one unarguable fact she had to face was that she had found one Now she had to deal with it.Taking deep breaths, she went to the phone and dialed the operator

“Get me the police,” she said quickly

A few minutes later, Maggie went outside Though she’d hoped the practical routine of reportingwhat she’d found would calm her, it hadn’t worked She didn’t go near the gully, but she found shecouldn’t sit inside, waiting alone Circling around the front of the house, she found a convenient rockand sat The puppy stretched out in the patch of sunlight at her feet and went to sleep

She could almost believe she’d imagined what she’d seen in that pile of dirt and rock It was too

peaceful here for anything so stark The air was too soft, the sun too warm Her land might be unruly,but it held a serenity that blocked out the harsher aspects of life.

Was that why she’d chosen it, Maggie wondered Because she wanted to pretend there wasn’tany real madness in the world? Here she could cocoon herself from so many of the pressures anddemands that had threaded through her life for so long Was this spot the home she’d always wanted,

or was it in reality just an escape for her? She squeezed her eyes shut If that were true, it made herweak and dishonest, two things she couldn’t tolerate Why had it taken this incident to make her

question what she hadn’t questioned before? As she tried to find her tranquillity again, a shadow fellover her Opening her eyes, Maggie looked up at Cliff

For some reason it toughened her She wouldn’t admit to him that she’d begun to doubt herself orher motives No, not to him

“Someone should be here soon.” She linked her folded hands over one knee and looked backinto the woods

“Good.” Several minutes passed while they both remained silent, looking into the trees

Eventually, Cliff crouched down beside her Funny, but he thought that she looked more apt tofall apart now than she had when he’d carried her into her kitchen Reaction, he decided, had differentspeeds for different people He wanted to hold her again, hard and close, as he’d done all too brieflybefore The contact had made something strong and sultry move through him Like her music—

something like her music

He wished like hell he’d turned down the job and had walked away the first time he’d seen her.Cliff looked past her to the slope that led to the gully

“You talked to Stan?”

“Stan?” Blankly, Maggie stared at Cliff’s set profile At that moment, he was close enough toreach but seemed miles away “Oh, the sheriff.” She wished he’d touch her, just for a moment Just ahand on her “No, I didn’t call him I called the operator and asked for the police She connected mewith the state police in Hagerstown.” She lapsed into silence, waiting for him to make some comment

on her typical city response

“Probably for the best,” Cliff murmured “I let the crew go It’ll be less confusing.”

“Oh.” She must’ve been in a daze not to notice that the trucks and men were gone When sheforced herself to look, she saw that the backhoe remained, sitting on the rise above the gully, big andyellow and silent The sun was warm on her back Her skin was like ice Time to snap out of it,

Maggie told herself, and straightened her shoulders “Yes, I’m sure you’re right Should I call youroffice when the police say it’s all right to start work again?” Her voice was businesslike Her throatwas dry with the thought of being left alone, completely alone, with what was down by the gully

Cliff turned his head Without speaking, he took off his sunglasses so that their eyes met

“Thought I’d hang around.”

Relief washed over her Maggie knew it must’ve shown in her face, but she didn’t have the will

to put pride first “I’d like you to It’s stupid, but—” She glanced over in the direction of the gully

“Not stupid.”

“Maybe weak’s a better word,” she mumbled, trying to smile

“Human.” Despite his determination not to, Cliff reached out and took her hand The touch, onedesigned to comfort, to reassure her, set off a chain reaction of emotion too swift to stop

It ran through her head that she should rise swiftly and go inside He might stop her, or he mightlet her go Maggie didn’t ask herself which she wanted, nor did she move Instead, she sat where shewas, meeting his gaze and letting the sensation of torrid, liquid heat flow through her Nothing else

existed Nothing else mattered.

She felt each of his fingers tense individually on her hand There was a sense of power there;whether it was his or hers, she wasn’t sure Perhaps it was the melding of both She saw his eyesdarken until the irises were only shades lighter than the pupils It was as if he were looking throughher, into her chaotic thoughts In the quiet of midafternoon, she heard each breath he drew in and

expelled The sound stirred the excitement that vibrated in the air between them

Together they moved toward each other until mouth molded itself to mouth

Intensity She hadn’t known anything between two people could be so concentrated, such puresensation She understood that if years passed, if she was blind and deaf, she would know this manjust by the touch of his lips In one instant she became intimate with the shape of his mouth, the tasteand texture of his tongue Her mouth was on his, his hand on hers, and they touched nowhere else Inthat moment there was no need to

There was an aggressiveness, even a harshness, to the kiss that Maggie hadn’t expected It heldnone of the sweetness, the hesitation, that first kisses often do, yet she didn’t back away from it

Perhaps it was all part of the attraction that had begun the moment he’d stepped from the truck

Different, yes, he was different from the other men who’d touched her life—different still from theman she’d shared her body with She’d known that from the first encounter Now, with his mouthstirring her senses, she found herself grateful for it She wanted nothing to be the same as it had been,

no reminders of what she’d had once and lost This man wouldn’t pamper or worship He was strongenough to want strength in return She felt his tongue tangle with hers, probing deeper Maggie reveled

in the demands

It was easy, almost too easy, to forget her delicate build, her fragile looks, when her mouth was

so ardent on his He should’ve known there’d be deep, restless passion in a woman who created

music with such sexuality But how could he have known that passion would call to him as thoughhe’d been waiting for years?

It was much too easy to forget she wasn’t the kind of woman he wanted in his life when her tastewas filling him Again, he should have known she’d have the power to make a man toss aside alllogic, all intellect Her lips were warm, moist, the taste as pungent as the scent of newly turned eartharound them The urge rose to take her in his arms and fulfill, there under the clear afternoon sun, allthe needs that welled inside him Cliff drew back, resisting that final painful twist of desire

Breathless, throbbing, Maggie stared at him Could that one searing meeting of lips have movedhim as it had moved her? Were his thoughts swimming as hers were? Was his body pulsing with wild,urgent needs? She could tell nothing from his face Though his eyes were fixed on hers, their

expression was unreadable If she asked, would he tell her that he, too, had never known a wave ofpassion so overwhelming or so mesmerizing? She would ask, and would know, as soon as she had thevoice to question As she sat, struggling to catch her breath, the events of the day came flashing backinto her mind Abruptly, Maggie sprang to her feet

“God, what are we doing?” she demanded With a hand that shook, she pushed the hair awayfrom her face “How can we at here like this when that—that thing’s only a few yards away?”

Cliff took her arm, turning her back to face him “What does one have to do with the other?”

“Nothing I don’t know.” With her insides churning, she looked up at him Her emotions hadalways been too dominant Though she knew it, Maggie had never been able to change it It had beenyears since she’d really tried Confusion, distress, passion, radiated from her as tangible things

“What we found, it’s dreadful, unbelievably dreadful, and a few moments ago I was sitting there

wondering what it would be like to make love with you.”

Something flashed in his eyes, quickly controlled Unlike Maggie, Cliff had learned long ago tochannel his emotions and keep them to himself “You obviously don’t believe in evading the issue.”

“Evasions take too much time and effort.” After letting out a long breath, Maggie managed tomatch his even, casual tone “Listen, I didn’t expect that sort of—eruption,” she decided “I supposeI’m wound up over all of this, and a bit too susceptible.”

“Susceptible.” Her choice of words made him smile Somehow, when she became cool andcalm, he became tempted to prod Deliberately, he lifted a hand and ran his fingertips down her

cheek Her skin was still warm with desire “I wouldn’t have described you that way You seem to be

a woman who knows what she wants and how to get it.”

If he’d wanted to fire her up, he’d found the perfect key “Stop it.” In one sharp move, she

pushed his hand from her face “I’ve said it before—you don’t know me Every time we’re together, Ibecome more certain that I don’t want you to You’re a very attractive man, Cliff And very unlikable

I stay away from people I don’t like.”

It occurred to him that he’d never gone out of his way to argue with anyone before A lot of

things were changing “In a small community like this, it’s hard to stay away from anyone.”

“I’ll put more effort into it.”

“Are you trying to be smart, or are you trying to be charming?”

“I never had to try to be either one.”

“Think again.” Because she was having trouble controlling the grin, Maggie turned away Asluck would have it, she found herself staring out over the gully A chill raced up her spine Swearing,she folded her arms under her breasts “I can’t believe it,” she muttered “I can’t believe I’m standinghere having a ridiculous conversation when there’s a—” She found she couldn’t say it and detestedherself “I think the whole world must be going mad.”

He wasn’t going to let her get shaky on him again When she was vulnerable, she was much moredangerous “What’s down there’s been there for a long time.” His voice was brisk, almost hard “Itdoesn’t have anything to do with you.”

“It’s my land,” Maggie tossed back She whirled around, eyes glowing, chin angled “So it haseverything to do with me.”

“Then you better stop shaking every time you think about it.”

“I’m shaking.”

Without a word, he drew her hand away from her elbow so they could both see the tremor

Furious, Maggie snatched it away again “When I want you to touch me, I’ll let you know,” she saidbetween her teeth

“You already have.”

Before she could think of an appropriate response, the dog scrambled up and began to bark

furiously Seconds later, they both heard the sound of an approaching car

“He might make you a decent watchdog, after all,” Cliff said mildly The pup bounded around incircles like a mad thing, then hid behind the rock “Then again …”

As the official car came into sight, he bent down to pat the dog on the head before he walkedtoward the end of the drive Maggie hurried to keep pace Her land, her problem, her responsibility,

she told herself She’d do the talking.

A trooper climbed out of the car, adjusted his hat, then broke into a grin “Cliff, didn’t expect tosee you out here.”

“Bob.” Because the greeting didn’t include a handshake, Maggie assumed the men knew eachother well and saw each other often “My company’s handling the landscaping.”

“The old Morgan place.” The trooper looked around with interest “Been a while since I wasback here You dig up something we should know about?”

“So it seems.”

“It’s the Fitzgerald place now,” Maggie cut in briskly

The trooper touched the brim of his hat and started to make a polite comment His eyes widenedwhen he took his first good look at her “Fitzgerald,” he repeated “Hey, aren’t you Maggie

Fitzgerald?”

She smiled, though the recognition, with Cliff beside her, made her uncomfortable “Yes, I am.”

“I’ll be damned You look just like your pictures in all the magazines I guess there isn’t a songyou’ve written I can’t hum You bought the Morgan place.”

“That’s right.”

He pushed the hat back on his head in a gesture that made her think of cowboys “Wait till I tell

my wife We had ‘Forever’ played at our wedding You remember, Cliff Cliff was best man.”

Maggie tilted her head to look at the man beside her “Really?”

“If you’ve finished being impressed,” Cliff said mildly, “you might want to take a look at what’sdown by the gully.”

Bob grinned again, all amiability “That’s why I’m here.” They began to walk toward the gullytogether “You know, it isn’t easy to tell what’s from a human and what’s from an animal just by

looking Could be, ma’am, that you uncovered a deer.”

Maggie glanced over at Cliff She could still feel the way her hand had slid into the hollow

opening of what she’d taken for a rock “I wish I could think so.”

“Down here,” Cliff said without acknowledging the look “The going’s rough.” In a smooth,calculated move, he blocked Maggie’s way before she could start down It forced her to pull up shortand grab his arm for support “Why don’t you wait here?”

It would’ve been easy to do so Much too easy “It’s my land,” Maggie said, and, brushing byhim, led the way down herself “The dog started digging in this pile.” She heard the nerves in her ownvoice and fought against them “I came down to pull him away, and that’s when I saw …” Trailingoff, she pointed

The trooper crouched down, letting out a low whistle “Holy hell,” he murmured He turned hishead, but it was Cliff he looked at, not Maggie “It doesn’t look like you dug up any deer.”

“No.” In a casual move, Cliff shifted so that he blocked Maggie’s view “What now?”

Bob rose He wasn’t smiling now, but Maggie thought she detected a gleam of excitement “I’llhave to call the investigation section Those boys are going to want to take a look at this.”

Maggie didn’t speak when they climbed up the slope again She waited in silence while the

trooper went to his car to radio in his report When she did speak, she deliberately avoided the

reason they were all standing outside in the middle of the afternoon

“So you two know each other,” she commented as though it were any normal remark made onany normal day

“Bob and I went to school together.” Cliff watched a big black crow swoop over the trees Hewas remembering the look on Maggie’s face the moment before she’d begun to scream “He ended up

marrying one of my cousins a couple of years ago.”

Bending over, she plucked a wildflower and began to shred it “You have a lot of cousins.”

He shrugged The crow landed and was still “Enough.”

“A few Morgans.”

That caught his attention “A few,” he said slowly “Why?”

“I wondered if it was your connection with them that made you resent my having this land.”

Cliff wondered why, when he normally respected candor, it annoyed him from her “No.”

“But you did resent it,” Maggie insisted “You resented me before you even saw me.”

He had, and perhaps the resentment had grown since he’d had a taste of her “Joyce had the right

to sell this property whenever, and to whomever, she wanted.”

Maggie nodded, looking down to where the puppy scrambled in the new dirt “Is Joyce a cousin,too?”

“What are you getting at?”

Lifting her head, Maggie met his impatient look “I’m just trying to understand small towns Afterall, I’m going to be living here.”

“Then the first thing you should learn is that people don’t like questions They might volunteermore information than you want to hear, but they don’t like to be asked.”

Maggie acknowledged this with a lift of a brow “I’ll keep that in mind.” Rather pleased thatshe’d annoyed him, Maggie turned to the trooper as he approached

“They’re sending out a team.” He glanced from her to Cliff, then over his friend’s shoulder

toward the gully “Probably be here for a while, then take what they find with them.”

“What then?”

Bob brought his attention back to Maggie “Good question.” He shifted his feet as he considered

it “To tell you the truth, I’ve never been in on anything like this before, but my guess would be they’dship everything off to the medical examiner in Baltimore He’d have to check the, ah, everything outbefore they could start an investigation.”

“Investigation?” she repeated, and felt something tighten in her throat “What kind of

investigation?”

The trooper ran his thumb and forefinger down his nose “Well, ma’am, as far as I can see,

there’s no reason for anything like that to be buried down in that gully unless—”

“Unless someone buried it there,” Cliff finished

Maggie stared out into the peaceful spread of greening wood across the lane “I think we couldall use some coffee,” she murmured Without waiting for an acknowledgment, she went back towardthe house

Bob took off his hat and wiped at the sweat on his forehead “This is one for the books.”

Cliff followed his friend’s long look at the woman climbing the rickety front steps “Which? Her

or that?” With one hand he gestured toward the gully

“Both.” Bob took out a pack of gum and carefully unwrapped a piece “First place, what’s awoman like her, a celebrity, doing holed up here in the woods?”

“Maybe she decided she likes trees.”

Bob slipped the gum into his mouth “Must be ten, twelve acres of them here.”

“Twelve.”

“Looks to me like she bought more than she bargained for Holy hell, Cliff, we haven’t had

anything like this down in this end of the county since crazy Mel Stickler set those barn fires Now, inthe city—”

“Taken to the fast pace, have you?”

Bob knew Cliff well enough to catch both the dig and the humor “I like some action,” he saideasily “Speaking of which, the lady songwriter smells like heaven.”

“How’s Carol Ann?”

Bob grinned at the mention of his wife “Just fine Look, Cliff, if a man doesn’t look, and

appreciate, he’d better see a doctor You’re not going to tell me you haven’t noticed just how nice thatlady’s put together.”

“I’ve noticed.” He glanced down at the rock beside him She’d sat there when he’d kissed her Itwouldn’t take any effort to remember each separate sensation that had run through him in that onemoment “I’m more interested in her land.”

Bob let out a quick laugh “If you are, you’ve done a lot of changing since high school

Remember when we used to come up here—those blond twins, the cheerleaders whose parents rentedthe place for a while? That old Chevy of yours lost its muffler right there on that turn.”

“I remember.”

“We had some interesting walks up there in the woods,” Bob reminisced “They were the

prettiest girls in school till their daddy got transferred and they moved away.”

“Who moved in after that?” Cliff wondered, half to himself “That old couple from Harrisburg—the Faradays They were here a long time, until the old man died and she went to live with her kids.”Cliff narrowed his eyes as he tried to remember “That was a couple months before Morgan ran offthe bridge Nobody’s lived here since.”

Bob shrugged; then both of them looked toward the gully “Guess it’s been ten years since

anybody lived here.”

“Ten years,” Cliff repeated “A long time.”

They both looked over at the sound of a car “The investigators,” Bob said, adjusting his hatagain “They’ll take over now.”

From the corner of the porch, Maggie watched the proceedings She’d decided that if the policecrew needed her, they’d let her know It appeared to her that they knew their business She would just

be in the way down there, Maggie reasoned as she drank another cup of black coffee

She watched them shovel, sift and systematically bag what they’d come for Maggie told herselfthat once it was off her property, she’d forget it It would no longer concern her She wished she

could believe it What was now being transferred into plastic bags had once been a living being Aman or a woman who’d had thoughts and feelings had lain, alone, only yards from what was now herhome No, she didn’t believe she’d be able to forget that

Before it was over, she’d have to know who that person had been, why they had died and whytheir grave had been on her land She’d have to have the answers if she were to live in the home she’dchosen She finished the last swallow of coffee as one of the police crew broke away from the groupand came toward the porch Maggie went to the steps to meet him

“Ma’am.” He nodded to her but, to her relief, didn’t offer his hand Instead, he took out a badge,flashing the cover up briefly “I’m Lieutenant Reiker.”

She thought he looked like a middle-aged accountant and wondered if he carried a gun under hisjacket “Yes, Lieutenant.”

“We’re just about finished up Sorry for the inconvenience.”

“That’s all right.” She gripped her hands together over the cup and wished she could go inside,

to her music

“I’ve got the trooper’s report, but I wonder if you could tell me how you happened to find the

Remains, Maggie thought with a shudder It seemed a very cold word For the second time, sherelated her story of the puppy’s digging She did so calmly now, without a tremor

“You just bought the place?”

“Yes, I only moved in a few weeks ago.”

“And you hired Delaney to do some landscaping.”

“Yes.” She looked down to where Cliff stood talking to another of the team “The handyman Ihired recommended him.”

“Mmm-hmm.” In a very casual way, the investigator took notes “Delaney tells me you wantedthe gully there dug out for a pond.”

Maggie moistened her lips “That’s right.”

“Nice place for one,” he said conversationally “I’d like to ask you to hold off on that for a

while, though We might need to come back and take another look around.”

Maggie’s hands twisted on the empty cup “All right.”

“What we’d like to do is block off that area.” He hitched at his belt, then settled one foot on thestep above the other “Some chicken wire,” he said easily, “to keep your dog and any other strayanimal from digging around in there.”

And people, Maggie thought, deciding it didn’t take a genius to read between the lines Beforethe day was over, this would be the biggest news flash in the county She was learning fast “Do

whatever you need to do.”

“We appreciate the cooperation, Miss Fitzgerald.” He twirled the pen in his fingers, hesitating

“Is there something else?”

“I know it’s a bad time,” he said with a sheepish smile, “but I can’t pass it up Would you mindsigning my pad? I was a big fan of your mother’s, and I guess I know most all of your songs, too.”

Maggie laughed It was far better to laugh The day had been a series of one ludicrous event afteranother “Of course.” She took the offered pad and pen “Would you like me to say anything special?”

“Maybe you could just write—to my good friend Harvey.”

Before she could oblige, she glanced up and caught Cliff’s eyes on her She saw his lips twistinto something between a sneer and a smile With a silent oath, she signed the pad and handed it back

“I don’t know much about this kind of thing,” she began briskly, “but I’d appreciate it if you kept

me informed on whatever’s being done.”

“We’ll have the medical examiner’s report in a few days.” Pocketing his pad, the investigatorbecame solidly professional again “We’ll all know more then Thanks for your time, Miss Fitzgerald.We’ll be out of your way as soon as we can.”

Though she felt Cliff’s gaze still on her, Maggie didn’t look over Instead, she turned and walkedback into the house Moments later, music could be heard through the open windows

Cliff remained where he was, though he’d answered all the questions that he could answer Histhoughts were focused on the sounds coming from the music room It wasn’t one of her songs, he

concluded, but something from the classics, something that required speed, concentration and passion.Therapy, he wondered, frowning up at the window With a shrug, he started toward his car It wasn’this concern if the lady was upset Hadn’t she told him she’d moved back here to be on her own?

Turning his head, he saw the investigators preparing to leave Within moments, he reflected,she’d be alone The music pouring out of the windows was tense, almost desperate Swearing, Cliffstuffed his keys back in his pocket and strode toward the steps

She didn’t answer his knock The music played on Without giving it a second thought, he pushed

open the front door The house vibrated with the storm coming from the piano Following it into themusic room, he watched her from the doorway.

Her eyes were dark, her head was bent, though he didn’t think she even saw the keys Talent?There was no denying it, any more than there could be any denying her tension or her vulnerability.Later, he might ask himself why all three made him uncomfortable

Perhaps he did want to comfort her, he told himself He’d do the same for anyone, under thecircumstances She didn’t have to mean anything to him for him to want to offer a diversion Straysand wounded birds had always been weaknesses of his Dissatisfied with his own logic, Cliff waiteduntil she’d finished

Maggie looked up, startled to see him in the doorway Damn her nerves, she thought, carefullyfolding her hands in her lap “I thought you’d gone.”

“No They have.”

She tossed the hair out of her eyes and hoped she looked composed “Was there something

“I had a steak in mind.”

“I beg your pardon?”

The cool response made his lips curve Yes, he definitely preferred her this way “I haven’teaten.”

“Sorry.” Maggie began to straighten her sheet music “I don’t happen to have one handy.”

“There’s a place about ten miles out of town.” He took her arm to draw her to her feet “I have afeeling they’d treat a steak better than you would, anyway.”

She pulled away, stood her ground and studied him “We’re going out to dinner?”

He knew, understood, and whatever his approach, Cliff was offering her exactly what she

needed

Though their thoughts weren’t particularly calm, neither of them spoke as they walked throughthe door together

Chapter Five

Maggie set aside the next day to complete the title song for the movie score She made a

conscious effort to forget everything that had happened the day before Everything She wouldn’t think

of what had been buried and unearthed so close to her house, nor would she think of police or

investigators or medical examiners

In exactly the same way, she refused to think of Cliff, of the one wildly exciting kiss or of theoddly civilized dinner they’d shared It was difficult to believe that she’d experienced both with thesame man

Today, she was Maggie Fitzgerald, writer of songs, creator of music If she thought of only that,was only that, perhaps she could convince herself that everything that had happened yesterday hadhappened to someone else

She knew there were men outside spreading seed, planting There were shrubs going in, mulchbeing laid, more brush being cleared If the landscape timbers she’d seen brought in that morningmeant what she thought, construction was about to begin on her retaining wall

None of that concerned her The score demanded to be completed, and she’d complete it Theone form of discipline she understood perfectly was that a job had to be done no matter what went onaround you She’d seen her father direct a movie when his equipment had broken down and his actorshad thrown tantrums She’d known her mother to perform while running a fever Much of her lifemight have been lived in a plush, make-believe world, but she’d learned responsibility

The score came first today, and the title song would be written Perhaps she’d even add someclever little aside to C.J at the end of the tape before she mailed it off

It certainly wouldn’t do to mention what was going on in her side yard, Maggie thought as shemeticulously copied notes onto staff paper C.J wouldn’t be able to find enough antacids in L.A tohandle it for him Poor man, she mused, he’d been worried about the roof caving in on her In a totallyunexpected way, it certainly had If he knew there’d been policemen swarming over her land withplastic bags, he’d catch the next plane and drag her back to L.A

She wondered if Cliff would’ve dragged her from the house the night before if she hadn’t gonevoluntarily Fortunately, it hadn’t been an issue, because Maggie thought him perfectly capable of it.Yet he’d been the ideal dinner companion While she hadn’t expected consideration from him, he’dbeen considerate She hadn’t expected subtle kindness, but it had been there Finding both had made itdifficult to remember she considered him an unlikable man

They hadn’t spoken of what had been found on her property that day, nor had there been anyspeculation on the whys and hows They hadn’t discussed his work or hers, but had simply talked

Looking back, Maggie couldn’t say precisely what they’d talked about, only that the mood hadbeen easy So easy, she had almost forgotten the passion they’d pulled from each other in the quietafternoon sunlight Almost forgotten The memory had been there, quietly nagging at her throughout theevening It had made her blood move a little faster It had made her wonder if he’d felt it, too

Maggie swore and erased the last five notes she’d copied down C.J wouldn’t appreciate thefact that she was mixing her bass and tenor She was doing exactly what she’d promised herself shewouldn’t do, and as she’d known it would, the upheaval of yesterday was affecting her work Calmly,she took deep breaths until her mind was clear again The wisest course was to switch the recorderback on to play and start from the beginning Then the knock on the front door disrupted her thoughts